Progression Of Corn

The corn at the market is as sweet as ever but my enthusiasm has waned after feasting on them for the last while. This is not unlike dating a stunningly beautiful woman. Yes, you still find her attractive but her beauty no longer makes your jaw drop. All that is to say I still enjoy summer sweet corn but I’m looking for fun ways to incorporate them into a meal. I had some corn kernels leftover in the fridge this morning though Wednesday being market day, I was keen to get rid of them for fresher ones. This was how my breakfast of corn fritters and Romano bean mole with roasted butternut squash came to be.

The Romano bean mole is adapted from one of my older recipes using ingredients I had on hand. Cooking with fresh shelling beans is a joy because they always come out creamy with significantly shorter cooking time. I made a big batch of this mole last night using butternut squash, swiss chard, and fresh tomatoes. The richness imparted by dark chocolate, roasted almond, coffee, cinnamon, and chipotle in adobo made me want to bottle that sauce and slather on everything I eat.

The mole has a very assertive taste so I decided to pair it with something more mild. I loosely adapted a corn fritter recipe from September 2000 issue of Gourmet Magazine. I don’t recall making corn fritters before but I am pretty good at flipping pancakes so it was no big challenge. Each corn fritter is packed with corn kernels and green onions. The batter of cornmeal, egg, and milk is just barely enough to bind the vegetable together. I added a touch of smoked paprika and ras al hanout to boost the flavour. The fritters took on a bit of char from pan-frying which made them more interesting than raw corn kernels. This was a hearty breakfast which works just as well as light supper.

Method

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together cornmeal, flour, salt, and spices. Whisk in milk and egg until blended. Set aside for 10 minutes to plump the cornmeal. The batter would look too thin and more like a slurry.

Heat a large non-stick skillet at medium heat. Add about 2 tsp of oil and wait until oil is hot enough that it shimmies.

Stir in corn kernels and green onion to batter until evenly coated.

Using a 1/4 cup ice-cream scoop, drop a scoop of batter into the pan and flatten it into a 3 1/2 inch round. Fry for about 2-3 minutes on each side until golden. Place cooked fritter on a plate lined with paper towel to absorb excess grease.

Comments

Progression Of Corn

The corn at the market is as sweet as ever but my enthusiasm has waned after feasting on them for the last while. This is not unlike dating a stunningly beautiful woman. Yes, you still find her attractive but her beauty no longer makes your jaw drop. All that is to say I still enjoy summer sweet corn but I’m looking for fun ways to incorporate them into a meal. I had some corn kernels leftover in the fridge this morning though Wednesday being market day, I was keen to get rid of them for fresher ones. This was how my breakfast of corn fritters and Romano bean mole with roasted butternut squash came to be.

The Romano bean mole is adapted from one of my older recipes using ingredients I had on hand. Cooking with fresh shelling beans is a joy because they always come out creamy with significantly shorter cooking time. I made a big batch of this mole last night using butternut squash, swiss chard, and fresh tomatoes. The richness imparted by dark chocolate, roasted almond, coffee, cinnamon, and chipotle in adobo made me want to bottle that sauce and slather on everything I eat.